Siem Reap

Siem Reap City is the capital of Siem Reap Province, Cambodia. Siem Reap has colonial and Chinese-style architecture in the Old French Quarter, and around the Old Market. In town, there are Apsara dance performances, craft shops, silk farms, rice-paddy countryside, fishing villages and a bird sanctuary near the Tonle Sap Lake. It is the gateway city for nearby Angkor Wat.

Siem Reap today, being a popular tourist destination, has a large number of hotels and restaurants. Most smaller establishments are concentrated around the Old Market area, while more expensive hotels are located between Siem Reap-Angkor International Airport and the town along National Road 6. There are a variety of mid-range hotels and restaurants along Sivatha, and budget to mid-range hotels in the Phsar Leu area.

The name Siem Reap means the 'Defeat of Siam' —today’s Thailand —and refers to a centuries-old bloodbath, commemorated in stone in the celebrated bas relief carvings of the monuments.

In 1901 the École Française d'Extrême Orient (EFEO) began a long association with Angkor by funding an expedition to the Bayon. In 1907 Angkor, which had been under Thai control, was returned to Cambodia and the EFEO took responsibility for clearing and restoring the whole site. In the same year, the first tourists arrived in Angkor - an unprecedented 200 of them in three months. Angkor had been 'rescued' from the jungle and was assuming its place in the modern world.

Siem Reap was little more than a village when the first French explorers re-discovered Angkor in the 19th century. With the return of Angkor to Cambodian, or French, control in 1907, Siem Reap began to grow, absorbing the first wave of tourists. The Grand Hotel d'Angkor opened its doors in 1929 and the temples of Angkor remained one of Asia's leading draws until the late 1960s, luring visitors like Charlie Chaplin and Jackie Kennedy. In 1975, the population of Siem Reap, along with that of the rest of the cities and towns in Cambodia, was evacuated by the communist Khmer Rouge and driven into the countryside.

Siem Reap, Battambang & Preah Vihear received by King Sisowath, 1907.As with the rest of the country, Siem Reap's history (and the memories of its people) is coloured by spectre of the brutal Khmer Rouge Regime, though since Pol Pot's death in 1998, relative stability and a rejuvenated tourist industry have been important steps in an important, if tentative, journey forward to recovery. With the advent of war, Siem Reap entered a long slumber from which it only began to awake in the mid-1990s.

Today, Siem Reap is undoubtedly Cambodia's fastest growing city and serves as a small charming gateway town to the world famous heritage of the Angkor temples. Thanks to those attractions, Siem Reap has transformed itself into a major tourist hub. Siem Reap nowadays is a vibrant town with modern hotels and architectures. Despite international influences, Siem Reap and its people have conserved much of the town's image, culture and traditions.

Prepare for divine inspiration. Between the 9th and the 13th  centuries, a succession of Khmer devaraja ruled from Angkor, using the vast wealth and huge labor force of their empire to initiate a series of monumental construction projects. Intended to glorify both the kings and their ancestors, many were built in the vicinity of Siem Reap.
The lost city of Angkor became the centre of intense European popular and scholarly interest after the publication in the 1860s of  La Tour du Monde, an account by the French naturalist Henri Mouhot of his voyages. A group of talented and dedicated archaeologists and philologists, mostly French, soon undertook a comprehensive programmed of research.

This is the world’s largest religious building-they don’t come bigger than this. Angkore Wat, with its soaring towers and extraordinary bas relief’s, is one of the most inspired and spectacular monuments ever conceived  by the human mind. It was built by suryavarman II to honor Vishunu, his patron deity and for use as his funerary temple. The centre temple consists of three elaborate levels, each of which encloses a square surrounded by intricately interlinked galleries. Rising 31m above the third level and 55m above the ground is the central tower, which gives the whole ensemble its sublime unity. The temple is surrounded by a vast moat, which forms a 1.5km by 1.3 rectangle.

Angkor Thom

The fortified city of Angkor Thom, north of Angkor Wat, is a colossus, its walls stretching more than 12km, 6m high and 8m wide every step of the way. It was constructed under the watchful eye of Angkor’s most prolific builder, Jayavarman VII, who came to power in the 12th century after the disastrous sacking of  the previous. Khmer capital, centered on the Baphoun, by the Cham people.

Terrace of Elephants

The 350m-long Terrace of Elephants was used as a giant reviewing stand for public ceremonies and parades and served as the king’s grand audience hall. It’s easy to imagine the overwhelming pomp and grandeur of the Khmer empire at its height in surroundings such as this

 Phnom Bakheng

This is the definitive hiatus location from which to photograph. Angkor Wat in the glow of a late afternoon sun and to watch the sunset over the surrounding countryside. Sadly it’s no secret, so it can be a bit of a circus these days.

Terrace of the Leper King

The Terrace of the Lerper King, just north of the Terrace of Elephants, is a carved platform, on top of which stands a statue of the leper king. The figure, possibly of Yama, god of death, is believed by the locals to be of Yasovarman, a Khmer ruler whom legend says, died of leprosy.

Preah Khan has a similar floor plan to Ta Phrom, but is in a superior state of preservation. Shaped in a cruciform, the southern corridor is a wonderfully atmosphere jumble of vines and stones, while near the eastern entrance there is a curious two-storey structure which would look more at home in Greece than Cambodia.

Preah Neak Pean

Preah Neak Pean is like the ultimate ornamental pond at some Balinese resort, with a central tower set in a square poll, and four smaller pools laid out symmetrically around the centre, each with a subterranean carved fountain. The temple was originally set in a massive bray that fed Preah Khan and was built surprise, surprise – during the reign of Jayahvarman VII.

Ta Som

This tiny temple is easy to overlook with so many other temptations to choose from but the eastern gate here has been absolutely overwhelmed by an ancient tree that has sent its intrusive roots on a destructive mission into every nook and cranny.

The Roluos Group

The monuments of Rolous, which served as the capital of Indravarman I, are among the earliest large, stone temples built by the Khmer and mark the beginning of classical art. While they can’t compete with the major monuments, it’s worth visiting these temples for a chronological insight in the evolution of Khmer architectural ingenuity.Preah Ko is a direct link to the earlier brick structures of the pre-Angkorian Chenla period, with six brick Prasat decorated with carved sandstone and plaster reliefs.Bakong, the grandest of Angkor’s earlier temples, was also Indravarman It’s baby and dedicated to Shiva. Like many of Angkor’s later creation, it is a representation of Mt Meru. The complex consists of a five-tier central pyramid of sandstone, flanked by eight towers of brick and sandstone.
 

Further Afield

The following temples are beyond the central area of Angkor, but both Banteay Srei and Kbal Spean can be combined together for a few dollars more. For a fistful of dollars, it is possible to add Beng Mealea to the list. A standard Angkor pass is good for entry to all three.
 

Beng Mealea

Is a truly abandoned temple that makes Ta Prohm look like they just forgot to mow the lawn. Built by Suryavarman II, the man who gave the world Angkor Wat, the layout is remarkable similar to its more famous twin, although this is hard to imagine given the mess it is today.
 

Phnom Kulen

Phnom Kulen is one of the most sacred places in Cambodia, birthplace of the Khmer empire in 802 when Jayavarman II proclaimed independence from Java. At the summit of the mountain is an ancient reclining Buddha and an active monastery. Visitors usually prefer the large waterfall and the impressive carvings found on the riverbed nearby.

The Bayon

Ever get the feeling someone’s staring at you. There are 216 gargantuan faces of Avalokittesvara temple. Built around 1200 by Jayavarman VII in the exact centre of the city of Angkor Thom, some historians believe the unsettling faces with the city smile bear more than a passing resemblance to the great king himself. What better way to keep an eye on your subjects. Almost as extraordinary are the Baryon’s 1200m of bas reliefs, incorporating a staggering 11,000 figures. The most elaborate carvings on the outer wall of the first level depict vivid sconces of like in 12th century Cambodia, including cockfighting and kick boxing.
 

The Baphuon

Some have called this the world’s largest jigsaw puzzle. Painstakingly taken apart piece by piece of archaeologist before the civil war, their meticulous records were destroyed during the madness of the Khmer Rouge. When the team eventually returned, it was to find thousands of stones and no direction as to where they should go.
 

Ta Prohm

One of the most popular of Angkor’s many wonders, Ta Prohm looks like it fell straight out of a film set from Indiana Jone  and has recently been used for shooting both  Tomb Raider and Two Brothers. The 12th century Mahayana Buddhist temple is one of the largest edifices of the Angkorian era and has been left much as it looked when the first French explores set eyes on it more than a century ago. While other major monuments of Angkor have been preserved with a massive programmed to clear way the all.